Far easier than taking lessons

To put it succinctly, Guitar Hero is the greatest rhythm game ever created. Not just for the PS2, but any game console period.

Like most rhythm games, the concept behind Guitar Hero is that the player must hit notes, corresponding to buttons on the controller, that scroll down the screen at the precise time. As difficulty levels increase, more notes are added, and the space between them decreases. All pretty straight forward stuff.

The genius of Guitar Hero is not that the game idea is all that original (it isn't) but rather in the ingenious guitar controller used to actually play the game. You are unlikely to ever find a peripheral as brilliantly conceived as the "Guitar Hero SG Controller." Shaped like a small, black and white Gibson SG guitar (think Angus Young of AC/DC) complete with a strap for wearing around your neck. The neck of the guitar has five buttons (green, red, yellow, blue and orange), while the body contains a strum bar, start and select buttons shaped like volume knobs and even a whammy bar.

While playing through a song, notes scroll down the screen located on one of five "strings", each of which corresponds to one of the neck buttons. The player must hold down the correct button with their left hand and then hit the strum bar with their right hand at the correct moment to play the note. If played correctly the note will ring out and the player's Rock Meter will increase. When played incorrectly the sound will be discordantly cut off and the Rock Meter will decrease. If the Rock Meter falls to low, the player fails the song and must try again.

Some notes must be held for extended periods of time and the player must keep the buttons held down. The whammy bar can be used on these notes to actually alter the pitch and to create a cool vibrato effect.

Occasionally, passages of notes will be star shaped, and if these passages are played perfectly the player's Star Meter will fill up. Once it is halfway full the player can tilt the guitar vertically to enable Star Power. When Star Power is engaged, the screen will change colors, the music being played will get louder and the crowd will go wild. Double points are earned while Star Power is engaged and the Rock Meter fills up much faster making it the best way to survive difficult passages on the harder songs.

If all this sounds complicated, don't worry. After going through the game's tutorials, even a beginner will understand the concepts. Executing them is another issue though as Guitar Hero can be extremely challenging. Fortunately there are four difficultly levels. Easy actually is, and even people brand new to the game can pass most songs without much effort. Medium adds a fourth key to press and is challenging but certainly not anything most players couldn't pick up quickly. Hard and Expert truly live up to their names and some songs on Expert become so difficult that it seems impossible for anyone not a lifelong guitarist to ace them.

A game like Guitar Hero is going to live and die by the music, but rest assured there are no worries in this department. Featuring a whopping 30 licensed tracks for the main campaign mode, there is a lot of music here. These aren't unknown tracks either. Classic guitar rock tracks such as "I Love Rock & Roll", "Iron Man" and "Crossroads" are included, as are newer tracks by Franz Ferdinand and Queens of the Stone Age ensuring that if you like guitar rock, there are a bunch of songs in the game for you. The only negative regarding the songs is that they aren't actually performed by the original bands, but instead by studio musicians. The guitar work sounds the same, but occasionally the vocals don't quite compare well to the originals.

As you start the campaign mode you are given the choice of one of six guitarists and three guitars to choose from. Your band starts out playing in a basement with a choice of five songs to perform. As you pass those songs, you open up new venues to perform in, and new tiers of songs to increase your set list. Passing a song gives you money and a performance rating. Get a higher rating and get more cash. The cash can be spent in the unlock store to purchase videos, new characters, new Gibson guitars, new paint jobs for your guitars and also to unlock 17(!) new songs.

Two player mode is a lot of fun as well. The two players each play the same song simultaneously, trading licks to compete for the highest score. It makes a great party game as well, as it's a lot of fun to watch, just be ready for long lines. If multiplayer is important to you, make sure to purchase a second guitar controller though; you can play with a regular dual-shock, but it wouldn't be any fun.


For the majority of us who'll never get a chance to appear on stage in front of thousands of screaming fans, Guitar Hero is the closest we'll come. It's a surprisingly involving simulation that makes you really feel like a rock star. If that was ever a dream of yours, run out immediately and grab a copy of this game as fast as you can. Strike a guitar hero pose, throw up the horns and get ready to rock; your game has arrived.

© Copyright ToxicUniverse.com 02/02/2006